[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 92 (Monday, May 15, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 22385-22386]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-09703]
[[Page 22385]]
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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
[Docket No. NHTSA-2017-0014]
Technical Report Evaluating Fatality Reduction by Seat Belts in
the Center Rear Seat
AGENCY: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA),
Department of Transportation (DOT).
ACTION: Request for comments on technical report.
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SUMMARY: This notice announces NHTSA's publication of a technical
report estimating the fatality-reducing effectiveness of seat belts for
adult and adolescent passengers in the center rear seats of passenger
cars and LTVs. The report's title is: Fatality Reduction by Seat Belts
in the Center Rear Seat and Comparison of Occupants' Relative Fatality
Risk at Various Seating Positions.
DATES: Comments must be received no later than September 12, 2017.
ADDRESSES:
Report: The technical report is available on the Internet for
viewing in PDF format at https://crashstats.nhtsa.dot.gov/Api/Public/ViewPublication/812369.
Comments: You may submit comments, identified by Docket Number
NHTSA-2017-0014, by any of the following methods:
Internet: To submit comments electronically, go to the
U.S. Government regulations Web site at http://www.regulations.gov.
Follow the online instructions for submitting comments.
Fax: Written comments may be faxed to 202-493-2251.
Mail: Send comments to Docket Management Facility, U.S.
Department of Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., West Building
Ground Floor, Room W12-140, Washington, DC 20590.
Hand Delivery: If you plan to submit written comments by
hand or courier, please do so at 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., West
Building Ground Floor, Room W12-140, Washington, DC between 9 a.m. and
5 p.m. Eastern Time, Monday through Friday, except federal holidays
You may call Docket Management at 1-800-647-5527.
Instructions: For detailed instructions on submitting comments and
additional information see the Comments heading of the SUPPLEMENTARY
INFORMATION section of this document. Note that all comments received
will be posted without change to http://www.regulations.gov, including
any personal information provided. Please see the Privacy Act heading
in the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: John Kindelberger, Chief, Evaluation
Division, NVS-431, National Center for Statistics and Analysis,
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Room W53-312, 1200 New
Jersey Avenue SE., Washington, DC 20590. Telephone: 202-366-4696.
Email: [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In 2002 Anton's Law (Pub. L. 107-318)
directed NHTSA to require 3-point belts for each rear seating
position--including center rear seats--in new passenger motor vehicles
by September 1, 2007. Manufacturers had begun installing 3-point belts
at the center rear seats in some makes and models as early as 1994, and
completed the transition from lap belts to 3-point belts on time.
Double-pair comparison and logistic regression analyses of FARS data
for 1990 to 2014 show that 3-point belts are highly effective in the
center rear seats: Buckling up reduces passengers' fatality risk by an
estimated 58 percent in passenger cars (95% confidence bounds: 41% to
69%) and by 75 percent in LTVs (confidence bounds: 63% to 84%).
In cars of the 1960s and 70s, when restraints use rates were lower,
the rear seats were substantially safer than the front seats for
unrestrained occupants, and the center rear seat even safer than the
outboard rear seats. These differences between seats have substantially
diminished over the past 30 years. Statistical analyses of FARS do not
show statistically significant mitigation of fatality risk for outboard
rear or center rear seats of passenger cars relative to the driver's or
right front seats, for belted occupants of the same age and gender.
Corresponding analyses of LTVs show reduced fatality risk for the right
front and right rear seats relative to the driver's seat; however, they
do not show significant advantages for the outboard rear or center rear
seats relative to the right front seats.
Comments
NHTSA welcomes public review of the technical report. NHTSA will
submit to the Docket a response to the comments and, if appropriate,
will supplement or revise the report.
How do I prepare and submit comments?
Your comments must be written and in English. To ensure that your
comments are correctly filed in the Docket, please include the Docket
number of this document (NHTSA-2017-0014) in your comments.
Your primary comments must not be more than 15 pages long (49 CFR
553.21). However, you may attach additional documents to your primary
comments. There is no limit on the length of the attachments.
Please submit one copy of your comments, including the attachments,
to Docket Management at the address given above under ADDRESSES.
Please note that pursuant to the Data Quality Act, in order for
substantive data to be relied upon and used by the agency, it must meet
the information quality standards set forth in the OMB and DOT Data
Quality Act guidelines. Accordingly, we encourage you to consult the
guidelines in preparing your comments. DOT's guidelines may be accessed
at http://www.rita.dot.gov/bts/sites/rita.dot.gov.bts/files/subject_areas/statistical_policy_and_research/data_quality_guidelines/index.html.
Privacy Act: Anyone is able to search the electronic form of all
comments received into any of our dockets by the name of the individual
submitting the comment (or signing the comment, if submitted on behalf
of an association, business, labor union, etc.). You may review DOT's
complete Privacy Act Statement in the Federal Register published on
April 11, 2000 (65 FR 19477-78) or you may visit http://www.dot.gov/privacy.html.
How can I be sure that my comments were received?
If you wish Docket Management to notify you upon its receipt of
your comments, enclose a self-addressed, stamped postcard in the
envelope containing your comments. Upon receiving your comments, Docket
Management will return the postcard by mail. You may also periodically
access http://www.regulations.gov and enter the number for this docket
(NHTSA-2017-0014) to see if your comments are on line.
How do I submit confidential business information?
If you wish to submit any information under a claim of
confidentiality, you should submit three copies of your complete
submission, including the information you claim to be confidential
business information, to the Chief Counsel, NHTSA, U.S. Department of
Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., Washington, DC 20590. In
addition, you should submit a copy, from which you have deleted the
claimed confidential business
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information, to Docket Management at the address given above under
ADDRESSES. When you send a comment containing information claimed to be
confidential business information, you should include a cover letter
setting forth the information specified in our confidential business
information regulation. (49 CFR part 512.)
Will the agency consider late comments?
In our response, we will consider all comments that Docket
Management receives before the close of business on the comment closing
date indicated above under DATES. To the extent possible, we will also
consider comments that Docket Management receives after that date.
How can I read the comments submitted by other people?
You may read the comments received by Docket Management at the
address given above under ADDRESSES. The hours of the Docket are
indicated above in the same location.
You may also see the comments on the Internet. To read the comments
on the Internet, take the following steps:
(1) Go to http://www.regulations.gov.
(2) Regulations.gov provides two basic methods of searching to
retrieve dockets and docket materials that are available in the system:
(a) ``Search'' to search using a full-text search engine, or (b)
``Advanced Search,'' which displays various indexed fields such as the
docket name, docket identification number, phase of the action,
initiating office, date of issuance, document title, document
identification number, type of document, Federal Register reference,
CFR citation, etc. Each data field in the advanced search may be
searched independently or in combination with other fields, as desired.
Each search yields a simultaneous display of all available information
found in regulations.gov that is relevant to the requested subject or
topic.
(3) You may download the comments. However, since the comments are
imaged documents, instead of word processing documents, the ``pdf''
versions of the documents are word searchable.
Please note that even after the comment closing date, we will
continue to file relevant information in the Docket as it becomes
available. Further, some people may submit late comments. Accordingly,
we recommend that you periodically check the Docket for new material.
Authority: 49 U.S.C. 30111, 30181-83 delegation of authority at
49 CFR 1.95 and 501.8.
Issued in Washington, DC.
Joseph M. Kolly,
Acting Associate Administrator, National Center for Statistics and
Analysis.
[FR Doc. 2017-09703 Filed 5-12-17; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-59-P